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Iowa State senior linebacker Joel Lanning poses for a photo during the Iowa State football team media day at Bergstrom Indoor Practice Facility on the Iowa State campus in Ames on Thursday, Aug. 3, 2017. Bryon Houlgrave/The Register

Ankeny quarterback Joel Lanning reacts after a successful two-point conversion during the 4A state championship football game between Ankeny and Cedar Rapids Xavier on Nov. 16, 2012 in Cedar Falls. Register file photo

AMES, Ia. – It’s been a while — 2008, to be exact — since Iowa State had a quarterback start each game during a season.

More specifically, it was Austen Arnaud, so what makes that relevant today is that just because Joel Lanning is having a good preseason camp – there’s always room for a No. 2.

The strong-armed dude from Ankeny allegedly is sliding more, not taking as much of a head-strong approach when he runs the football. He’s safer, but if you know Lanning – well, that’s not going to be easy.

“In the past, it’s been a little rough, Sam (Richardson) and Grant (Rohach) and myself were going back and forth,” Lanning said when asked about the Cyclones’ revolving starting quarterback door.

Injuries. Lack of productivity. Both have played a part in Iowa State’s changing quarterbacks at various times during a season.

“Joel has proven, during the 2015 season, to be a very productive runner,” quarterbacks coach Jim Hofher said. “Whether it was pull it down on a pass play, or if it was a called quarterback run of some sort, Joel has proven to be an effective guy.”

Lanning started the final five games last season, replacing Richardson when the coaches finally determined that change needed to happen.

Immediately the next week, he was asked questions about his running – why he often ran more like a fullback than a quarterback.

“It’s part of the game,” the 6-foot-2, 225-pound junior said Thursday. “It’s fine to do that, but I also have to recognize it’s not high school football, where I was the biggest guy on the field.

“Every linebacker is either my size or bigger now, so yeah, I’ll be getting down a little bit when those guys come around.”

But is that enough to make him a 12-game (or 13-game) starter?

CLOSE

He's got more pep in his step, now that there's no more starting uncertainty

Transfer Jacob Park will have something to say about that, and remember, Iowa State has had at least two quarterbacks start games each of the past eight seasons.

And remember that Park hasn’t played a game since high school, after transferring from Georgia and then to Trident Technical College in South Carolina. That school, by the way, didn’t offer football.

“I’ve been through a lot of adversity, lots of ups and downs,” Park said. “I kind of stay a little more even keel.

“You throw a good ball, yeah, you threw a good play, but it’s all about the next play.

“I didn’t have that when I was younger.”

He threw for 3,665 yards and 33 touchdowns as a high school senior in Charleston, S.C. The four-star recruit from Rivals, Scout and ESPN was South Carolina's Mr. Football in 2013.

And now he’s at Iowa State. For now, as the backup.

“I think the one thing I can do is outside the pocket, I keep my eyes downfield and I can make some throws on the run,” Park said. “I’m not saying Joel can’t make them, but that’s what I look to do, (and) he tends to look to run the ball. That’s just how it is.”

He’s been in Ames for just more than a month. Immediate reaction?

“A football player in college football should really live like you live here,” Park said. “It’s a slow-paced lifestyle, not a lot of distractions.

“When I was at Georgia, it’s a lot faster pace. You (could) really do anything you want outside of school. There’s a lot of stuff going on, a lot of distractions.

“Some people don’t see it as distractions, and I didn’t when I first started college, but I do now, and I’m a lot more focused.”

What was he like back then, a kid just out of high school suddenly attending a school like Georgia?

Cyclones quarterback Jacob Park poses for a portrait during media day on Tuesday, August 9, 2016 in Ames.(Photo: Brian Powers/The Des Moines Regi)

“I wasn’t on the wild side,” he said, “but I did have my share of fun.”

His idea of a good time now is helping Iowa State win. It’s pushing Lanning. It’s being pushed my Lanning.

And if history repeats, eventually becoming a starter.

Randy Peterson, senior sports reporter, has been with the Register for parts of five decades. Randy writes opinion and analysis of Iowa State football and basketball. You can reach Randy at rpeterson@dmreg.com or on Twitter at RandyPete.